Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials

Overview Nature of Work Knowledge Areas Skills Utilized Job Activities Abilities Job Conditions Work Satisfaction Education/Training

Career Overview Press or shape articles by hand or machine. Salary for Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials Select a State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Marshall Islands Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands Outside of US   25th Percentile 75th Percentile Mean U.S. $16,640 ($8.00) $22,610 ($10.87) $19,860 ($9.55) Annual figures are on top. Hourly figures are below in parentheses. N/A = Information not available

Overall employment of textile, apparel, and furnishings workers is expected to decline rapidly through 2018, but outlook varies by detailed occupation. In addition to some employment growth in a few specialties, the vast majority of openings will stem from the need to replace workers who leave the occupation each year.

Employment change. Employment in textile, apparel, and furnishing occupations is expected to decline by 15 percent between 2008 and 2018. Apparel workers have been among the most rapidly declining occupational groups in the economy. Increasing imports, the growing use of offshore assembly, and greater productivity through automation will contribute to additional job losses. Also, many new textiles require less production and processing.

Domestic production of apparel and textiles will continue to move abroad, and imports to the U.S. market are expected to increase. Fierce competition in the market for apparel will keep domestic apparel and textile firms under intense pressure to cut costs and produce more with fewer workers. Although the textile industry already is highly automated, it will continue to seek to increase worker productivity through the introduction of labor-saving machinery and the invention of new fibers and fabrics that reduce production costs. Technological developments, such as computer-aided marking and grading, computer-controlled cutters, semiautomatic sewing and pressing machines, and automated material-handling systems have increased output while reducing the need for some workers in larger firms.

Despite advances in technology, the apparel industry has had difficulty utilizing automated equipment for assembly tasks because of the delicate properties of many textiles. Also, the industry produces a wide variety of apparel items that change frequently with changes in style and season. Even so, increasing numbers of sewing machine operator jobs are expected to be lost to workers abroad. Employment of sewing machine operators is expected to decline rapidly by 34 percent.

Tailors, dressmakers, and custom sewers—the most skilled apparel workers—are expected to experience little or no change in employment. Most of these workers are self-employed or work in clothing stores. The demand for custom home furnishings and tailored clothes is diminishing in general, but remains steady in upscale stores and by certain clients. Designer apparel and other handmade goods also appeal to people looking for one-of-a-kind items.

Employment of shoe and leather workers and repairers is expected to decline rapidly by 14 percent through 2018 as a result of growing imports of less expensive shoes and leather goods and of increasing productivity of U.S. manufacturers. Also, buying new shoes often is cheaper than repairing worn or damaged ones.

Employment of laundry and dry-cleaning workers is expected to grow 3 percent, slower than the average for all occupations. Many of these jobs continue to be locally-based, thus an expanding population will result in some employment growth.

Employment of upholsterers is expected to grow 7 percent, which is about as fast as the average for all occupations. Employment growth will be driven by custom upholstery services, which is expected to increase as consumers seek to restore antique furniture and items with sentimental or intrinsic value.

The following table shows the projected growth rates from 2008 to 2018 for detailed textile and apparel manufacturing occupations:

Job prospects. Despite a rapid decline in overall employment, the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations, retire, or leave the occupation for other reasons will lead to numerous job openings. Relatively low earnings and poor working conditions will continue to result in a high job turnover.

Textile, apparel, and furnishings workers held 787,500 jobs in 2008. Employment in the detailed occupations that make up this group was distributed as follows:

Many manufacturing jobs can be found in California, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Pennsylvania. Jobs in reupholstery, shoe repair and custom leatherwork, and laundry and dry-cleaning establishments are found in cities and towns throughout the Nation. Overall, about 11 percent of all workers in textile, apparel, and furnishings occupations were self-employed; however, about 43 percent of all tailors, dressmakers, and sewers and about 29 percent of all upholsterers were self-employed.

1.	Cooling and Freezing Equipment Operators and Tenders
2.	Fabric Menders, Except Garment
3.	Glass Blowers, Molders, Benders, and Finishers
4.	Jewelers
5.	Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers
6.	Prepress Technicians and Workers
7.	Printing Machine Operators
8.	Sewing Machine Operators
9.	Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers
10.	Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders

Information about job opportunities in textile, apparel, and furnishings occupations is available from local employers and local offices of State employment services.

For information on dry-cleaning occupations, contact:

• Drycleaning & Laundry Institute, 14700 Sweitzer Ln., Laurel, MD 20707. Internet: http://www.ifi.org

For information on textile and apparel manufacturing occupations, contact:

• American Apparel & Footwear Association, 1601 No. Kent Street, 12th floor, Arlington, VA 22209. Internet: http://www.apparelandfootwear.org

Sources: O*Net data version 12.0
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Department of Labor

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